Glossary · AI & workplace data

What is workplace analytics?

Short answer

Workplace analytics is the collection and analysis of data on how offices are used, such as bookings, check-ins, attendance, occupancy and room use, to guide decisions about space, policy and services. Workplace, real estate, HR and facilities teams use it to size the portfolio, test hybrid policies and plan layouts on evidence rather than assumption.

Also called workplace insights, space analytics, office analytics, occupancy analytics.

How it works

The data comes from operational systems: desk and room bookings, check-ins, office network presence, badge access, visitor sign-ins and sometimes sensors. Analytics joins them into shared measures, such as occupancy, peak day, no-show rate, attendance against policy and room seat use, by building, floor, team and day.

Reporting runs at three levels. Operational views help facilities run this week, for example crowded floors or rooms with repeated no-shows. Policy views show HR how attendance and team overlap respond to changes. Portfolio views give real estate and finance the trends behind lease, consolidation and fit-out decisions.

Good workplace analytics measures spaces, not individual productivity. It reports in aggregate where possible, limits access to personal records and keeps data only as long as needed. That keeps the data trusted, which keeps the signals flowing.

How to measure it

  1. Start from the decisions due in the next year and the few metrics that inform them.
  2. Use presence data for use; keep bookings as a measure of intent and compare the two.
  3. Break every metric down by weekday, floor and team.
  4. Automate recurring leadership reports, so the analysis is current when a decision comes up.

Examples

  • A council replaces days of manual reporting with live dashboards and uses them to decide which buildings to consolidate.
  • An HR team compares attendance by department before and after a policy change, then adjusts the policy for teams that work mostly with remote clients.

Benchmarks

Common mistakes

  • Building dashboards from bookings alone.
  • Reporting building averages that hide weekday peaks and team differences.
  • Using analytics to watch individuals, which erodes trust and data quality.
  • Producing reports that no decision depends on.

How Kadence helps

Kadence Workplace Insights reports attendance, occupancy, no-shows, office heatmaps and average weekly hours from check-ins and automatic presence, with CSV and bookings exports. Insights Plus (WorkOps Pro or add-on) adds custom dashboards, including policy compliance reporting. SpaceOps uses the same data to plan floors and compare scenarios.

Workplace analytics · Workplace analytics metrics guide · Karger story

Frequently asked questions

What is a workplace analytics dashboard?

It is a set of charts that shows how the office is used: occupancy and attendance by day, peak days, no-shows, room use and trends by building and team. Good dashboards are built for a decision, such as sizing a floor or reviewing a policy.

What data sources does workplace analytics use?

Desk and room bookings, check-ins, office network presence, badge access, visitor sign-ins, sensors where installed, and HR data for teams and headcount. Combining an intent source (bookings) with a presence source shows the gap between planned and actual use.

How is workplace analytics different from people analytics?

People analytics studies the workforce: hiring, retention, engagement and performance. Workplace analytics studies the physical workplace: how spaces are used, when and by which teams. They meet on questions such as whether office time helps collaboration.

How do you use workplace analytics without surveillance?

Measure spaces and teams rather than individuals, report in aggregate, limit access to personal records, set retention periods and tell employees what is collected and why. Use the data to improve space and policy, not to judge individual performance.

  • Occupancy monitoring Continuous measurement of how many people use each building, floor, room and desk, and when, from presence signals or sensors.
  • Workplace KPIs The measures that show how well offices serve people and budget: occupancy, utilization, attendance, no-shows, cost per seat and more.
  • Space utilization How intensively buildings, floors, rooms and desks are used against their full capacity over time.
  • Presence data (sensorless occupancy) The record of who was actually in the building and when, from signals you already have: network, badges and check-ins.
  • Office heat map A floor plan colored by how often each desk, room or zone is used, so busy and quiet areas stand out at a glance.

Kadence editorial team · Last reviewed

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